Another striking feature of Ethiopia is the large number of lakes, almost all of them in the Rift. They include Ziway, Langano, Abijatta, Shalla, Awasa, Abaya, and Chamo, whick are situated in their own local systems of ‘inland drainage’.

These lakes were formed by th millennia of heavy rainfall that hit Africa during te same period the ‘Ice Age’ was affecting northern Europe. Although they are slowly evaporating – ‘small puddles compared to their shrinkage has exposed huge areas of alluvial soil that allow prosperous and productive, agriculture and created a rich productive, agriculture and created a rich environment for wildlife and birds.

But Ethiopia’s largest lake, Tana, on the other hand, is the result of the damming of the natural drainage from the area on the western plateau now covered by the lake.

The Blue Nile Falls (Tis Isat) are at the point where the overflow from the lake drops over the edge of a lava flow.The country also possesses a number of beautiful lakes formed out of extinct volcanoes, such as that on Mount Zuqualla, or interconnected volcanoes like the one on Mount Wonchi. Both are within easy access of Addis Ababa.